Commissioners

Dr. Kathleen F. Burke began her service on the Commission in 2019. Currently, she is the Interim Deputy Chancellor for the Los Angeles Community College District, the nation’s largest community college district serving over 200,000 students across nine accredited colleges. Prior to her current position, she served as the Interim President at Los Angeles Trade Technical College and the Chancellor of the South Orange County Community College District. Dr. Burke has over 44 years of experience in the California Community College System, including service as college president, vice president, and academic dean for 19 years in the Los Angeles Community College District, and as a faculty member for over 20 years at Glendale Community College. She has chaired three comprehensive review teams and served as a team member on seven additional peer review teams for ACCJC. Dr. Burke holds a Doctorate of Education in Institutional Management from Pepperdine University; a Master of Arts in Art, from California State University, Northridge; a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art, both from the University of California, Irvine; and an Associate of Arts in Humanities from Glendale Community College.

Mr. Michael Zimmerman began his service on the Commission in October of 2019. He has been with Campus, formerly known as MTI College, since 2009, and began serving as the institution’s president in 2017. In addition to his responsibilities at Campus, he is a member of the board of directors for the California Association of Private Postsecondary Schools and is Vice Chair of the Golden Sierra Workforce Development Board. He served previously as a peer reviewer. Mr. Zimmerman holds a B.A. in Business Economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Mr. Michael Claire began his service on the Commission in 2019. He retired in 2023 after serving the San Mateo County Community College District as Interim Chancellor in 2019 and then Chancellor beginning in 2020. In those roles, he worked with the Board of Trustees and all stakeholders to develop and implement strategic, tactical, and operational plans to achieve the district mission and to improve student access and success. He supervised district staff and the college presidents of the district’s three colleges: Cañada College, College of San Mateo, and Skyline College. Prior to becoming Interim Chancellor in 2019, Mr. Claire worked at College of San Mateo for most of his 30+ year career, serving as the President for thirteen years. He also served as Vice President of Instruction, Dean of the Technology Division, and as a faculty member, teaching accounting, business, and computer application courses. Mr. Claire has experience in strategic planning, fiscal management, educational master planning, and facilities planning. He has served on seven accreditation reaffirmation visits, chairing five of those visits, and on a number of follow-up visits. Mr. Claire holds an M.B.A. and a B.S. in Business Administration, both from California State University, East Bay; and an A.A. in Business Administration from Cañada College. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Dr. Lori Gaskin began her service on the Commission in 2016. She holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from the University of Nevada, and an M.A. in Geography and a B.A. in Geography from the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Gaskin retired in August, 2016 as Superintendent/President of Santa Barbara City College after four years. She previously served as the President of West Valley College for three years, and as Vice President of Academic Affairs and Student Services, Acting Superintendent/President, and Dean of Instruction at Lake Tahoe Community College for 17 years. She began her career in higher education as a faculty member at Barstow College. Dr. Gaskin has experience in institutional planning, fiscal oversight, bond oversight, educational policies and practices, participatory governance, and institutional accountability. She has served on a total of six comprehensive evaluation and follow-up teams as chair and as a member.

Mr. Jeffrey K. Ball (“Jeff”) began his service on the Commission in 2022. He is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Orange County Business Council where he represents the interests of local businesses and organizations in promoting the region’s economic prosperity. He is the Founder of Friendly Hills Bank in Whittier where he previously served as President and Chief Executive Officer and is currently Vice Chair of the Board. Prior to opening Friendly Hills Bank he held several officer positions with BankAmerica Corporation focused on both Commercial and Investment Banking. Mr. Ball is a leading advocate for the importance of Financial Education in all communities and was the lead petitioner in the establishment of Kinetic Academy, a K-8 charter school located in Huntington Beach, California where he currently serves as Vice Chair. Mr. Ball is a Past Chair of the California Bankers Association and Kinetic Academy, Past President of the Whittier Host Lions Club and Past Founding Chair of the Whittier Union High School District Foundation. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, Mobility21 and Data Center, Inc. as Chair of the Audit Committee. Mr. Ball is also a member by appointment of the Legal Services Trust Fund Commission of the California State Bar to which he previously served as Co-Chair chaired and is a Public Member of the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. Mr. Ball frequently guest lectures on Financial and Economic principles at colleges and universities across the nation. He has a Masters in Business Administration from Whittier College and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration/Finance from the University of Puget Sound.

Dr. David Broad began his service on the Commission in 2022. He is the retired Vice President/General Manager of Oceanside Product Operations at Genentech, Inc., a biotechnology corporation. During his career in biotechnology, Dr. Broad became a biopharmaceutical process development and manufacturing expert providing strategic and technical guidance related to the development, scale-up, manufacturing, and outsourcing for a wide range of biologics. He served in high-level management and executive positions working under Food and Drug Administration regulations and employee Good Manufacturing Practices to ensure Quality Assurance and continual improvement. In addition to his career in biotechnology, Dr. Broad is an outgoing Trustee at MiraCosta Community College where he  ended his service in May 2022 after 11 years, six of which as President. He based his trusteeship on the belief that good governance and leadership are critical to ensuring community colleges can fulfil their mission to serve all members of the community. During his time as Trustee, he used his executive and leadership experience to help develop and stabilize trustee and CEO relations and was actively involved in the college’s reaffirmation of accreditation process. Dr. Broad also volunteers as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), advocating for youth going through the foster system, and is a Commissioner on the Oceanside Manufactured Homes Fair Practices Commission. Dr. Broad holds a Ph.D. in Microbiology and a B.Sc. in Microbiology, both from the University of London.

Ms. Ravinder Dayal began her service on the Commission in 2024. She is the Provost/Vice President of Academic Affairs and Accreditation Liaison Officer for Carrington College and provides leadership for institutional and over 20 programmatic accredited programs. In this role, Ms. Dayal is committed to ensuring strong academic quality with a focus on equity and diversity. Prior to her work at Carrington College, Ms. Dayal has served in several leadership roles at DeVry University including Associate Provost for Innovation, Dean of Academic Operations, Dean of Academic Affairs, Dean of Curriculum, and Director of Program Management, following her initial position of Assistant Professor of Business. Additionally, Ms. Dayal serves on the Oregon Credit for Prior Learning Advisory Committee with the Higher Education Coordinating Commission and worked with the American Council on Education (ACE) to develop the ENGAGE platform. She has served as an ACCJC peer reviewer and on the ACCJC Standards Review Team. Ms. Dayal holds an M.A. in Workforce Education from Ohio State University, and a Bachelor of Education and a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of British Columbia.

Dr. Caleb Fowler Jr. began his service on the Commission in 2024. He has over 30 years of experience as a higher education faculty member and is currently a Professor of Computer Information Science at Folsom Lake College. Dr. Fowler has been on the Folsom Lake College Accreditation Steering Committee for over 10 years and has participated in two accreditation cycles at the college. His doctoral studies at the University of California, Davis, focused on social justice in education, and his dissertation explored using the institutional self-evaluation report to generate actionable information for community college leadership to improve college operations. Dr. Fowler has served on four ACCJC peer review teams. Prior to his work in education, he was an insurance industry underwriter where he honed his skills in identifying and mitigating risks. Dr. Fowler holds an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership (CANDEL Program) from the University of California, Davis; and an MBA and B.A. in Computer Information Science from California Polytechnic University, Pomona.

Dr. Ralph Hexter began his service on the Commission in 2023. He is currently a Distinguished Professor of Classics and Comparative Literature at the University of California, Davis, and for the UC system is chair of the President’s Advisory Committee on Research in the Humanities. He has held administrative positions at Yale University, where he started his teaching career; at the University of Colorado, Boulder; and at UC Berkeley, where he was chair of the Department of Comparative Literature, dean of arts & humanities, and executive Dean of the College of Letters & Science. From 2005-2010 he served as president of Hampshire College in Amherst, MA, and from 2011-2020 as provost & executive vice chancellor of UC Davis, during fifteen months of which time he served first as acting and then as interim chancellor. Both Hampshire College and UC Davis underwent successful reaccreditation reviews by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges and WASC, respectively, during his time in leadership positions. For WASC he has served on two evaluation committees (for San Diego State University and UEM Madrid) and for the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities he chaired the most recent reaccreditation review of the University of Washington. Dr. Hexter holds A.B., M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard College, Oxford University, and Yale University, respectively.

Dr. Nathaniel Jones III began his service on the Commission in 2023. He is the Vice President of Administrative Services at Los Angeles Mission College. Dr. Jones is an accomplished executive with an outstanding record of visionary leadership in higher education, health care, and management consulting. Prior to his current role, he was Interim Vice Chancellor, Finance & Administration for the Peralta Community College District and Vice Chancellor and President at College of Alameda. He has extensive experience with strategic planning, fiscal management, program review and evaluation and a strong commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. Dr. Jones’ professional experience also includes service as Vice President, Business Services at Moreno Valley College; Assistant Dean & Chief Financial Administrative Officer at the University of California, Riverside; Assistant Professor and Chief Financial and Administrative Officer at Dartmouth College; and roles as a corporate director in health care, and mechanical engineer. Dr. Jones has accreditation experience with ACCJC, WASC Senior, the Higher Learning Commission, and the Joint Commission for Hospital Organizations. He has served as Vice Chair on an ACCJC peer review team. Dr. Jones holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and an MBA from Loyola University.

Dr. Rosevonne Makaiwi Pato began her service on the Commission in 2023. She is the President of American Samoa Community College. She has served on two peer review teams and has chaired one peer review team. Dr. Makaiwi Pato has participated on the Pacific Postsecondary Education Council since 2013, providing support and collaboration for Pacific colleges and universities under ACCJC. She has served in various leadership roles at American Samoa Community College as Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, Vice President of Administrative Services, and as the Director of Institutional Effectiveness, and has headed the accreditation process at the College in these leadership roles. Dr. Makaiwi Pato holds a B.A. degree from the University of San Francisco, a M.Ed. from the University of Hawaii – Manoa, and a Doctorate in Education in Counseling Psychology from Argosy University – Phoenix.

Dr. Kim L. Morrison began their service on the Commission in 2023. They are the Equity, Diversity, Outreach and Inclusion Librarian at Chabot College where they have worked since 2004. In this role, Dr. Morrison provides information literacy instruction in course-related workshops and credit courses; outreach and mentorship to student organizations, campus student services and learning communities (UMOJA, Striving Black Brothers, Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS), Rise: Prison to College Program); and is a liaison with assigned departments. They are responsible for collection development of online and print materials and participate in collegial governance. Dr. Morrison has also served as the Library Coordinator at Chabot College and was a Schomberg – Spectrum Initiative Resident, Information Literacy Librarian, and EOPS- Information Literacy Coordinator at State University of New York, Buffalo. They have served as an ACCJC peer review team member on six visiting teams. Dr. Morrison holds a Ph.D. in Library and Information Science from Queensland University of Technology; a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) from State University of New York, Buffalo; and a B.A. in American Cultural Studies from Fairhaven College, Western Washington University.

Dr. Ángel Reyna began his service on the Commission in 2022. He is President of Madera Community College. In May 2019, Dr. Reyna was hired as founding president to lead the institution through Initial Accreditation to become the fourth college within the State Center Community College District (SCCCD). As President, he worked with faculty, staff, and students to establish Madera Community College’s inaugural Mission, Vision, Values, Educational Master Plan, Strategic Plan, and Governance Structure, and re-imagined the organizational structure to support an equity-minded campus culture. He has taken on leadership roles related to equity and anti-racism within SCCCD and the California community college system, for which he serves on the statewide CEO Racial Equity and Inclusive Excellence Taskforce. Dr. Reyna’s career includes nearly 8 years as an elected official for the City of Mabton (Washington State) including three and a half years as mayor. His prior roles in higher education include Vice President of Instruction at Renton Technical College where he also chaired the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council; Dean of Workforce Education at Walla Walla Community College; and Director for Workforce Education and ESL Adjunct Instructor at Yakima Valley Community College. He served on the Washington State Community and Technical Colleges’ Cross-Institutional Faculty of Color Mentorship Advisory Board, Washington Workforce Education Council, and Washington State Board of Health, and he founded a statewide leadership program for aspiring administrators of color. Dr. Reyna holds an Ed.D. in Organizational Leadership, from Northeastern University; and a Master’s in Education Leadership and a B.A. in History Education, both from Washington State University.

Mr. Jeff Stearns began his service on the Commission in 2023. He is a Professor of Language Arts and the Accreditation Liaison Officer (ALO) at Honolulu Community College (HCC). Mr. Stearns teaches English composition, literature, and journalism courses. As ALO, he is responsible for coordinating and supervising the accreditation activities and has successfully led the college through its last comprehensive review and recent midterm reporting. Other professional experience includes serving as the Division Chair of Language Arts and chairing the Planning and Institutional Effectiveness Council at HCC. He participated in the University of Hawaii President’s Emerging Leaders Program and Community College Student Success Council. Mr. Stearns has also worked in journalism as a production editor and foreign correspondent in Singapore and Tokyo, Japan. He has served on six ACCJC peer review teams and was an ACCJC Standards Review writing team member for the 2024 draft Standards. Mr. Stearns holds a Master of Arts Non-Fiction Writing (M.A.W), a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Iowa, and a B.A. in Japanese Literature from Kokugakuin University.

Ms. Della Teraoka began her service on the Commission in 2024. She is Interim Vice President for Community Colleges at the University of Hawaiʻi Community Colleges System Office. Della Teraoka has been with the University of Hawaiʻi Community Colleges (UHCC) system since 2020 and began serving as the interim vice president in July 2024. In this role, Ms. Teraoka provides leadership and support for seven community colleges. Before moving to the system office, Ms. Teraoka worked for 20 years at Leeward Community College where she held a wide range of positions from professor to vice chancellor for academic affairs. Prior to joining UH, she worked in private industry for seven years as an accountant and manager. While at Leeward Community College, Ms. Teraoka served as Accreditation Liaison Officer from 2012 until 2019 and served on ACCJC evaluation teams in 2014 and 2016. Ms. Teraoka earned her Master’s Business Administration from the University of Washington and a Bachelor’s Business Administration in Accounting and Management Information Systems from Texas Tech University.

Dr. Katherine Thorossian began her service on the Commission in 2022. She is the retired Superintendent of Monrovia Unified School District. As Superintendent she oversaw a district comprised of approximately 5,400 students and 700 employees serving students in one pre-school, five elementary schools, two middle schools, one comprehensive high school, one continuation high school, one k-12 independent study program, and a robust adult education program. Dr. Thorossian’s career in education also includes service as an adjunct professor, at the University of California, Irvine; assistant superintendent and principal at the Glendale Unified School District; and assistant principal, grade level coordinator, and English teacher at Walnut Valley Unified School District. She is currently the Association of California School Administrators representative on the Accrediting Commission for Schools (ACS-WASC) and has served on school accreditation committees and visiting teams. Dr. Thorossian holds an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from the University of Southern California; an M.S. in Counseling with option in Administration from California State University, Los Angeles; and a B.A. in English Literature from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Dr. Rowena Tomaneng began her service on the Commission in 2025 after she was nominated and confirmed by the Commission to complete the term of Daisy Gonzales/John Stanskas (July 2023 – June 2026). She is the Deputy Chancellor at the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office. Previously, Dr. Tomaneng served as President of San José City College (SJCC) in the San José Evergreen Community College District and President Prior of Berkeley City College in the Peralta Community College District. She also served in multiple roles at De Anza College in the Foothill-De Anza Community College District, including faculty in English, Asian American Studies, and Women’s Studies, Division Dean, and Associate Vice President of Instruction. Dr. Tomaneng serves on several Boards and Advisory Committees, including Asian Pacific Americans in Higher Education (APAHE) Board of Directors, American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Board of Directors, American Council on Education (ACE) Strengthening Institutions Roundtable, and others. Dr Tomaneng’s past service also includes serving as member of the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NAACE) Board of Directors and member of the Chief Executive Officers of the California Community Colleges (CEOCCC), Community College League of California (CCLC). Dr. Tomaneng has extensive accreditation/higher education experience. With her faculty and administrative roles, she has served on several college accreditation teams as a Standard Team lead and writer. With her presidencies, she has led the entire process of developing Institutional Self-Evaluation Reports, and she has served as an ACCJC Peer Review Team Chair and co-Chair for several colleges. Dr. Tomaneng received her Ed.D. from the University of San Francisco’s School of Education in International and Multicultural Education with a concentration in Human Rights Education; M.A. in English from the University of California, Santa Barbara; and B.A. in English from the University of California, Irvine.

Dr. Jennifer Vega La Serna began her service on the Commission in July of 2020. She is Assistant Superintendent/Vice President of Academic Services and Accreditation Liaison Officer (ALO) at College of the Sequoias. Dr. Vega La Serna’s career also includes positions as Academic Dean at College of the Sequoias, Director of the Ronald E. McNair Post baccalaureate Achievement Program at California State University, Dominguez Hills, and Senior Project Coordinator (Education Specialist) for the City of Los Angeles among other esteemed roles. She served as the President of the California Community College Chief Instructional Officers. Dr. Vega La Serna’s accreditation experience includes serving as ALO at College of the Sequoias since 2012, in which she has provided leadership at the College and District level through the sanction and reaffirmation process. She has served as an ACCJC team member on three visiting teams, including two comprehensive evaluation teams. Dr. Vega La Serna holds a Ph.D. in Education Policy, Planning and Administration and an M.S. in Teaching English as a Second Language from the University of Southern California, an M.A. in Education Counseling and Guidance from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, a B.A. in Liberal Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and an A.A. in Liberal Studies from the College of the Sequoias.

Ms. Karen Wong began her service on the Commission in 2024. A Professor of English, she currently serves as Coordinator of Institutional Effectiveness at Skyline College. In the first half of her career at the College, Ms. Wong taught English, co-coordinating the Puente Program, outcomes assessment and grants like the Basic Skills Initiative. Presently she coordinates operations and activities pertaining to evaluating institutional effectiveness, and is deeply engaged in accreditation at the College. She’s long been committed to fostering student success, equity, and intercultural understanding. Ms. Wong received recognition from her colleagues with the ASCCC’s Regina Stanback-Stroud Diversity Award and ASCCC/ RP Group’s SLO Coordinator of the Year Award. Beyond Skyline College, she has served on two California Community College Chancellor Office’s Institutional Effectiveness Partnership Initiative resource teams and three ACCJC peer review teams. Ms. Wong holds an M.A. in English Composition from San Francisco State University and a B.A. in Literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz.